Work Smart

 

 

By Nightengale Ben-Onyeukwu

Last week, an undergraduate student studying Microbiology walked up to me with her friend. 

'Ma, I need your advice,' she said. 'What should I major in within Microbiology?'

I told her, 'ENT - Ear, Nose and Throat.'  

She looked confused. 'Why?' 

I answered plainly. 'Look around you. Everyone has earpieces in their ears from morning till night. Loud music, calls, TikTok. In the next few years, many youths will start having hearing and ear problems. If you major in ENT now, by that time you will be one of the experts everyone will be looking for. You will cash out.'

Her friend then asked, 'What about Gynecology?'

I smiled and said, 'By the time you finish school, 99% of women may not even want to carry pregnancy. Technology is moving fast. They might perfect robots to carry babies. Maybe you should study ‘Robot Medicine’ if there’s such a thing.' 

She frowned. So I explained, 'Women today are already choosing surrogates and having just one or two children to keep their shape. Imagine what the world will look like 20 years from now.

Then I looked at both of them and said, 'Wait, let me give you more examples so you understand what I mean by 'work smart.'

The world is changing fast. Look at the problems coming:  

First, Mental Health: Social media pressure, unemployment, loneliness. In 10 years anxiety and depression will be the #1 issue for youths. If you go into Clinical Psychology or Mental Health Microbiology, people will pay anything for peace of mind.

Second, Cyber Security: Everything is online now - banking, school, even church. In 10 years fraud, hacking and AI scams will blow up. Cyber Security and Digital Forensics experts will be in every company.

Third, Environmental Health. Pollution, flooding, contaminated water. New diseases will come from climate change. If you major in 

Environmental Microbiology or Public Health, governments and NGOs will be looking for you.

 

Then I dropped my final words:  

Stop working hard. Start working smart.

Study the problems people will have tomorrow, and position yourself to solve them today.

ENT and Women’s Health are not going away. They are evolving into fertility, IVF, audiology, and reproductive technology.  

And the same with every other field. The future belongs to problem solvers.

That’s how you stay relevant.  That’s how you win.

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